Ask Jason Cerniglia what makes him a good financial advisor and you might be surprised when he doesn’t initially tick off his double major in finance and marketing from the University of Connecticut, or his nearly 20 years in the financial investment field.
While those are important facets of his expertise, it’s a bit of advice his dad gave him growing up that's helped guide him throughout his investment counseling career.
His father, a psychologist and war veteran who served two deployments in Vietnam, taught him how to read people and how to tell complex stories in ways others can easily understand.
"My dad ... always impressed on me that the most important thing you can do in interpersonal communication is to make sure you connect with people in such a way that they hear the same things you're saying, to be sure your communications with people are always clear, precise and easy to understand. We try to tell a story in the way the client can digest.”
A private wealth advisor with Ameriprise Financial Services Inc. on Hebron Ave., Jason says the lesson became even more pertinent recently as he’s helped some of his 300 clients navigate the turbulent markets wrought by the Coronavirus pandemic.
“What we’ve been seeing, what we’ve been talking to people about, has a lot more to do with psychology than the market.”
Calming investors, he adds, means knowing them personally, not just their financial situation.
Ameriprise’s approach to advising their approximately 1,200 clients is a holistic one. The firm views each client, he says, as the CEO of their financial life and their advisors as the CFOs.
“As the CEO you get to decide what you do and you should work with an advisor who communicates clearly to you the value of that financial planning.”
Recently named to Forbes Best-in-State Wealth Advisors list for 2020, Jason says that recognition, along with several other honors he’s achieved as a financial advisor, are a testament to his clients’ loyalty and his team’s commitment to excellence.
He and Ameriprise’s advisors, he adds, maintain an approachable and friendly rapport with their clients.
“We may not be their best friend but we see them enough that we’re friendly with one another, so that when life changes, when life happens, you can call your CFO and we’ll figure it out together. We don’t just know the best stock to buy or the best investment to make, we know our clients.”
